Photo by radovan on Unsplash

I had so much fun with the first microbrew data visualization in 2016 that I decided to do another one. this time using an article from the Brewer's Association called, "Today's Craft Beer Lovers: Millennials, Women, and Hispanics" as inspiration.  

I wanted to convert tables like this that I found in the article:

In terms of function stacked bar graphs show a larger category divided into smaller amounts, in order to show the relationships between those categorie.  I like 100% stacked bar graphs because it makes it easier to compare both within a bar graph and between bar graphs. 

To kick it off I drew a one inch square using my presentation software program (Powerpoint in this case). This square represents 10% of the stacked bar graph.

I copied the square 10 times to represent a 100% stacked bar graph of equal proportions and alternated colors so it would be easier for me to work with.

Then I marked it to indicate which square represented which percentage, and to serve as guides as I manipulated the squares to the size I needed them to be in order to represent the desired percentages.  Read on if this seems confusing.

PS The advantage of doing this in powerpoint is that it allows you to copy slides, so I was able to save this square/numeric guide as a template and copy it later - as many times as needed - for the various data visualizations I was creating. 

The first 100% stacked bar graph I created was the total population age 21+.  In the table we see that Millennials are 29% of the population, Gen Xers 25%, Boomers 35%, and Matures 10%.

The first step, then is to visually represent Millennials at 29%.  I pulled one of the squares a teeny bit to the left to show 29%.

Then I went to work on showing Gen Xers at 25%. 

On a 100% stacked bar graph using data from the original table Millennials occupy the space from 0-29%, Gen Xers occupy the space from 29-54% (for a total of 25%), Boomers occupy the space from 54-89% (for a total of 35%), and Matures occupy the space from 89-99% (for a total of 10%). 

​I pulled the 30-40% square over to meet the end of the Millennial representation at 29%, and then abbreviated the 50-60% square at what should be the 54% mark.  The numeric guides we created at the beginning are invaluable in helping determine where the final placement of the square shapes should be. 

When I had an accurate representation of what 25% for the Gen Xers looked like I colored all of the squares green to visually separate Gen Xers from the Millennials.  Then I repeated the process for Boomers and Matures, with magenta representing Boomers and turquoise representing Matures.

Then I started removing the guides, but indicated above each number the percentage each color represents.  Here you can see that the Millennial blue has 29% above it. 

And this is the draft "finished" product, showing each population represented by colors of varying lengths. Notice how you can see my second 100% bar graph template directly underneath the one we've been working on, ready to be worked on next. 

I repeated this process for the weekly beer drinkers by generation....

Weekly beer drinkers: Millennials: 41%; Gen Xers 27%; Boomers: 27%; Matures: 5%

And weekly craft beer drinkers by generation.   

Weekly craft​ beer drinkers by generation: Millennials: 57%; Gen Xers: 24%; boomers: 17%; Matures: 2%.  

When all three 100% stacked bar charts were complete I changed the colors to those of a beer-themed color palette (see Beer Themed Data Visualization, Part One), assigning the lightest color to the Millennials and the darkest to the Matures.  ​

The last step is to embed the Millennial, Gen X, Boomer and Mature labels within the respective bar charts, lighten the vertical visual guides and send them to the back, and add a title. 
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Here is the finished product:

And I couldn't stop there.  For good measure I decided to attempt this table too:

The top bar graph is total population, the middle is weekly beer drinkers, and the bottom is weekly craft​ beer drinkers.

Once you've got the template it's really easy and quick​!

Final product: 

Again, these 100% stacked bar charts are really versatile.  You can use them in nearly any situation where you want to see the relationship between things that total 100%...ie most any type of demographic data would work.  

​Cheers!

Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash

We originally published this post a few years ago.  Our website got hacked and we're rebuilding.  So the data is a few years old, but this data viz - and its development process - is still relevant. 

I'm always looking around for data visualizations that can capture the essence of complicated issues and distill them visually into easily understood concepts, and I find that the Huffington Post data team does a really good job of this.  

So when I came across the data viz below (sadly I can't find the original article but I'll keep looking and update this post with the link when I find it) I was inspired by the simplicity of the United States map.  Wow.  Instead of needing mad drawing skills I could position a bunch of squares together to represent geographic entities. That seemed easy enough. 

At the time Maine was experiencing a microbrew explosion and my little town of Orono - home to three - was no exception.  I challenged myself to represent Maine microbrews using this collection-of-squares method and decided to take it a step further with California microbrews (I grew up in California and I wanted to see how I could replicate the complex shape of the state using squares).

I started here, at the Brewer Association website.

Using a spreadsheet application I made a list of all of the breweries in each state by city or town AND county. Then I counted the number of microbrews by county and developed a range for a color coding system.

I started with Maine because there are fewer counties (16) and microbrews (56 at the time). 

Then I moved on the California with its 58 counties and 557 microbreweries. 

Next step was to represent each state as a collection of square counties.

Here's what I came up with for Maine:

And here is California:

For the record there is no "right" way to do this.  I was going for a shape that resembled the shape and contours of each state.

Next I picked a color palette.  I found this one by googling "beer color palette".  Try it, it's fun.

Then I assigned a palette color to each number range from my data set (see above) with no microbrews represented in the lightest (white) color and the darkest shade representing the range with the most microbrews.

The last step was to color code each county based on this range.

    

It's no shocker to see that the highest concentration of microbrews are in the counties with the highest population concentrations, and that many rural areas of each state have no microbrews.

​This is a fairly simple process.  It takes a little time to pull the data together, but I think you'll agree that it is a clean visualization with a lot of versatility. 

Give it a try and let us know how you make out!

So now that you’ve been lured here by our intriguing title, we’ll fill you in on the secret. This post is actually about icons.  Specifically, it’s about why to consider using them in your presentations and if you do - you’ll be an iconic presenter. See what we did there?  Tricky, huh?  ​

For our purposes, icons are defined as simple, flat two-dimensional illustrations often comprised of basic shapes.  Take a look at your computer or smartphone screen, you’ll see icons.  Now you’ll probably see them everywhere. (You can thank us later for drawing them to your attention.) Next week, Jamie’s blog post will break down the actual process of creating icons using the basic shapes that are preloaded in most slide design software.  It’s really nice.  I’ve seen a preview.  I’m pretty lucky that way. ​

Ok, now it’s your turn.  Seriously, send me your list.   ​

I feel a little better.  You? 

I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I can’t do anything about the spaghetti sauce aisle.  There are at least 200 sauce selections on those shelves, and I envision a future with more. This is the world we’re living in.  Sadly salsa is trending in a similar direction. But it’s okay.  Some problems we can solve, like how to take data from overwhelming to compelling in a presentation.   

First I would like to tell you a bit more about the backstage process of my brain when I’m sitting in an audience feeling overwhelmed by data.  It’s something like this:

Slide 1 - Oh, here’s some data.  
Feeling fortunate to be listening to an expert in this field. 
Not everyone gets these kinds of learning opportunities.

Slide 2 - This data is fascinating.  
Who knew there was so much detail.
Hmm, my neighbor is taking notes.  
Maybe I should take some.  
What kind of notes should I be taking?

Slide 3 - I wonder if my neighbor can see the screen. 
Everything looks mostly grey and fuzzy to me. 
Maybe I can find a seat closer to the front.

Slide 4 - I should make an eye appointment.

Slide 5 - Wait, what’s happening right now?  
I don’t understand anything. 
Everyone else here knows what’s going on but me.  

Slide 6 - She’s still taking notes.  Crap. 

Slide 7 - How did I even get this job? 
Does my boss know that I can’t understand anything?

Slide 8 - I’m a total fraud.  

Slide 9 - Is this what they mean by an existential crisis.  

Slide 10 - Look-up “existential crisis” later.  Not now though. Try to figure out what’s going on.

Admittedly I’m taking a risk disclosing my feelings of inadequacy when it comes to interpreting data in presentations.  If you’ve found yourself thinking similarly maybe you won’t feel so alone in the world anymore.  If you’ve never been in this position, perhaps it will give you window into the minds of some of your audience members. Mostly I hope that it provides you with some inspiration to find the story in your data - and to tell it really well.  

So you’ve got data, and you’d like to share it in your presentation.  Where to begin?  The first step is to focus on the goal of your presentation, which you may have learned how to define in Destination Presentation - Gimme a Goal (thanks Jamie).  Ask yourself - which of my data points/sets will help me achieve that goal? 

You likely have far more information you’re able to share, and that’s why editing your data should follow the same process as editing the key points to include in your presentation overall. Along each step of the way, you should continue to challenge yourself - does this information help me achieve my presentation goal?  We can all get wrapped up in wanting to share just one more thing because it’s really interesting.  Before you know it, you have 47 slides with stats, charts, and graphs in neon colors and wild animal patterns that sparkle when you click on them. You had to do something to make your data exciting after all.  

There should be recognition that they’ll be differences between the amount of data you can include in your presentation, and that which you’d find in a report. You can certainly provide your audience with the report in it’s entirety, as something to reference after your time together. If you’ve told a compelling story with the data you included in your presentation, audience members are probably more likely to reference the full report later.

The next step is to figure out the story you’re trying to tell with the data.  These are a few key questions to consider:
What are the conclusions that can be drawn? 
What’s compelling about this information? 
Are there trends to show?
Are there comparisons you’d like to demonstrate?
Is there anything surprising or unexpected to share? 
Answering these questions will help you get closer to figuring out the kind of information to highlight.

After you’ve identified the pieces of information to include, the next step is to figure out how to share it with your audience, presumably on a slide that’s projected on a screen. You’re going to need to transform your data into visuals that can be communicated easily and effectively.

You’re probably familiar with classic data visualizations such as maps, bar and column charts, pie charts, and Venn diagrams.  A quick google search yields many results to help you determine which tool to use and when.  The overall take-away here is that the chart type should be determined by the relationship you want to show.  The decision should not be based on your personal preference, like “pie charts are pretty” or feeling greater comfort with one tool over another. Once again, the goal is simplifying for the audience and making the data as easy to interpret as possible.

Let’s put this idea to the test with a fun bar versus pie chart demo.  Pie and bar charts are both great tools for showing parts of something in relationship to the whole (see below).  However as you can see in the example - when the percentages are small - it becomes hard to tell which is larger in pie chart form - and difficult to interpret the conclusion to be drawn.  It is much easier to see this particular information in bar chart form. Disclosure: this is fake data. As I told you, I am a fraud.  I have no idea what the most popular types of pasta sauce are.
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Secondly, reduce the noise created by the tick and grid marks (all those little lines).  Make them fade into the background with light colors, or eliminate them entirely. My go-to move is to type in my values and create a graph using the charts features in PowerPoint.  Then, I use the basic shapes tools - like rectangles - to recreate the visual with the correct proportions.  Then I simply delete the actual chart.  There may be other strategies to eliminate this clutter, but this one works quite well for me most of the time.  


Next you’ll want to be sure to create contrast with your color selection, and take care to select colors that will stand out on the screen. 

Selecting color palettes can be tough work.  Many professional designers use palettes created by someone else.  Check out ColorBrewer at www.colorbrewer.org.  It’s great source for color palettes for displaying data.  Also, single hues can be nice when you are trying to highlight incremental changes.  

Lastly, let’s talk legends. Legends are really hard to read on a projection screen.  No one in the back of the room can see the legend, rendering it useless.  I opt for large text labels over legends. 

If you’re interested in taking your data visualizations to the next level, consider this: use icons and simple illustrations in place of bars in charts to really “hook” the audience.  In this method, you’ll be channeling both artist and scientist.  It’s a lot of fun, and honestly not difficult. Keep in mind that these visuals shouldn’t be decorative. Data visualization is all about making data easier to understand. Additionally, not all data is appropriate for pictures, so don’t feel the need to completely eliminate traditional charts and graphs.  However this gives you a strategy to make your information really stand out in our information-overload age.  Here’s the spaghetti sauce data visualization done using this method.  This data visualization was created using basic shapes tools.  

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I have very few prized possessions, but one of them is a set of Princess Diana collectable plates from the Bradford Exchange.  ​

Being authentic is likely the single most effective way to achieve your presentation goals.  Unfortunately, we can’t all be as lucky as my plates.  They get to live at my house where they are cherished - and - they have written certificates proving their authenticity.  We have to work a little harder as speakers to convey our genuineness. The good news is that it isn’t that tough and I may be able to help a little.

Being authentic, while key to success (above almost everything else) isn’t often formally addressed by those offering advice on presentations. Perhaps it’s because being authentic is a more nebulous a topic to teach than others.  How do you teach others to be more like themselves?  It’s kind of a thinker! However, I’ve been really fortunate to work with Jamie and others who have really encouraged and celebrated authenticity.  Through those experiences I’ve adopted a few strategies to keep me on track, and perhaps some of them will be helpful to you. 

Here are a few of my go-to authenticity moves:

Be a little bit brave.  I wonder if there is anything that feels more unnatural than trying to be natural (authentic) in front of an audience. It can feel risky to be yourself in front of a group of people you perceive could judge you. What if they don’t like you? What if they don’t think you know what you’re talking about? What if they think you are the strangest person they’ve ever seen? Yikes! However, would you believe the quickest route to winning audience members over is to show them you trust them enough to be yourself? It’s also good to keep in mind that audiences are rooting for your success.  They want you to do well.  They are ready to support you.  Let them.    

Know your stuff.  A presenter is free to be authentic only when they have taken the time to become experts in the material they’re sharing with their audience. They aren’t stressed about forgetting their notes or missing key pieces of information.  They are prepared and confident.     

Know your connection to the material.  Be willing to find ways to identify those connections.  This doesn’t necessarily mean telling personal stories, or making uncomfortable disclosures.  Rather it’s about finding what’s meaningful  to you in the material and making sure that comes across in your delivery. So go ahead and get unreasonably excited about your data. Smile from ear to ear when you show your pie chart, if that’s what you feel in your heart.  We often feel that we need to restrain our feelings in a presentation for fear that showing our true emotions will be unprofessional.  This is not the case.  Make sure your clothes are neat, your material is organized, you’re delivery is respectful, and your breath isn’t kickin’ like Jackie Chan.  You can smile.  It’s cool.  Trust me. You’re still professional.  

Say less stuff. The best of the best presenters won’t tell you everything they know.  They will provide you with only the most relevant and meaningful information. They don’t over intellectualize or constantly remind you that they are an expert by inundating you with insider lingo or too much detail. Being concise is the mark of exceptional and authentic presenter.

You should sound like you.  I’m often charged with creating presentations that others will deliver.  The goal and key points are usually defined in a planning discussion with the presenter, as well as any essential material for inclusion.  Then I set about my work to organize the information, align the material with story ideas, analogies and/or activities, and often design a slide deck with a companion script.  This finished product then arrives back in the presenters hands with one direction: please change anything that doesn’t sound like you. The words you use in a presentation should be the words you’re using all the time.  When I write scripts, they contain placeholder text and notes.  They sound like me.  Even when I know the speaker very well and try to channel them when writing their script, I can never quite get it.  They give the basic framework, but presenters are then able to make edits and additions so it truly sounds like them.

Do what works for you.  Many of us have been guilty of attending a great presentation, and then trying to duplicate the presenter’s approach after the fact and fallen flat.  After a few failed attempts, I learned that I have to do what works for me in a presentation.  If you aren’t someone who is comfortable with telling jokes and using humor, please don’t try to turn your presentation into a stand up comedy routine.  You don’t need to do that in order to engage your audience.  There are many routes to audience engagement.  They all begin with the presenter being genuine and highlighting their assets.  I attended an awesome presentation during which the presenter actually sang.  It was beautiful and inspiring.  I cried a little.  I promise that if I tried to sing any of this to you, you’d cry too, but for an entirely different reason.  It would go very badly.  You just have to do what works best for you.  This is really where style and strengths come into play.  Know your style and identify your strengths. Then use them.  Are you a fantastic storyteller? Use several stories to illustrate your points. Do you excel at creating and leading hands-on activities? Build them into your presentation. 
Set aside time for questions.  My favorite part of presentations is often the time for questions at the end.  I usually don’t have many questions of my own, because my mouth is full of snacks but I so appreciate hearing the speaker’s responses to others’ questions.  This informal time often reveals much more about their perspectives, interest in the topic, and really shows their connectedness to the material.  You often get to know much more about the speaker during Q&A sessions.  Make sure to leave time for this important exchange between you and the audience. 

As with any topic, we’ve been learning by doing and experimenting.  We’d very much love to hear any advice you have about how to nurture authenticity.  Please drop us a line and share your thoughts. 




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I’m really into conspiracy theories.  It’s endlessly entertaining to think about the reasons why a group of people might collude to make something happen or cover something up.  Did Oswald act alone? How does Target know to send me a coupon for shampoo just as my shampoo is running low? Does the Illuminati really exist and is Jay-Z in it? (My daughter says no way on the Illuminati thing, but we both think something squirrely is going on with Target). ​

The thing about a road trip is that there is always a destination.  There is always a Point B.  You may not know the intersection of the town you’re headed for, and you may not know the route you’re taking to get there, but you do know where you’re going. ​

I try to live my life without regrets but there are several things I wish I’d known when I was younger. ​

Domino’s Pizza. ​